4 Hours
by Mariavc
Summary: 4 hours to reach the Hub to save Skye. She is running out of time and the team is running out of faith. Ward realizes how much he misses the sound of his rookie's voice and needs someone to blame. Set after T.R.A.C.K.S. and before whatever is going to happen in the next episode. A little Skyeward angst.


A/N: Some readers asked for a sequel to "Later" so, here it is. I hope you enjoy it. I don't want to ruin whatever happens in the next episode so I figured this little One shot could fit in there. Don't forget to leave your opinions. (Also, I highly recommend to read my other stories to understand a little something here. It's not necessary but they are short stories, you can find them in my profile, starting with "Protective"… just if you want… no pressure haha)

PS: I really need my Shield back. We have to wait until March now :( I wrote this one based on the next episode's promo.

PS2: If you haven't seen T.R.A.C.K.S yet, this is your SPOILER ALERT!

I don't own any of this… or I would be rich! haha

* * *

**4 HOURS**

**8:35 pm **

"Ward, please" May muttered, placing a hand over his shoulder.

"I told you" He growled, feeling the rage pilling up again in his chest, maybe it was a residual effect from the berserker staff, but he could felt the urge to destroy everything in his path, destroy the man he blamed for Skye's pain. "I told you that this was something personal. It was a bad idea from the start"

"You are letting your pain cloud your judgment"

Grant ignored her and continued, "She changed. He said something to her and… Why else would she go alone in a house full killers" He punched the SUV again and closed his eyes. He felt tears trying to escape for the first time in many years, since his brother. This time he had failed again, he had failed to protect the one he had to protect. "Why was she so stupid?"

"Grant, she was not stupid. She was being an agent; she was doing what every agent would have done in her position. So, respect her decision, she deserves it"

Grant opened his eyes again and looked back at May, his teeth clenched and his gaze cold. She could see the rage and sadness combined in his eyes "What if she dies?"

May didn't respond. She glanced back at the lab. Coulson looked heartbroken.

"We won't let that happen" She said without looking at him.

"We can't control it" Grant replied with a deep, dark, tone. He felt so helpless, useless, at least Simmons could do something, and she saved Skye's life by putting her in a tube that he didn't even know how to name. He didn't notice May's concerned expression. She was still looking right at Coulson.

"Let's hope it won't come to that" She muttered, knowing what was going thorough Phil's mind in that exact moment. She was thinking about it too.

* * *

**9:40 pm.**

The whole team, minus Grant, was reunited around the hyperbaric chamber. Fitz hugging a red-eyed Simmons. Coulson sitting next to the tube and staring at Skye, looking troubled, and May standing close to the door, waiting for the right moment to talk to her friend and tell him that what he was thinking wasn't right.

"Jemma" Leo said softly, stroking her arm. "You should rest"

"No, we're close to The Hub, and I need to monitor her-"

"Fitz is right" May interrupted. "She's going to need you when we get to the base, not now. You said it yourself. There's nothing we can do"

"What if something happens?" The bio-scientist asked with a sad voice.

"One of us is enough to check on her" Coulson said without lifting his gaze from Skye.

"I'll do it" Ward's voice caught the team by surprise. He walked in the lab, determined to be the one watching over her, and by that, he meant that he didn't want Coulson to do it.

His boss finally tilted his head up to look at him.

"I can do it"

"I know. But I'm her S.O. She's my responsibility. And I'll stay here until we reach The Hub" Ward said with authority. He didn't give Coulson the chance to speak when he directed his attention to Simmons "I'll let you know if something happens"

The couple of scientist nodded at the same time. Leo took Simmons' hand and they walked out of the lab.

Phil noticed Ward's hostile behavior. He looked at May, but she merely moved her head, giving him a subtle signal to follow her. And so, he did. They walked upstairs in silence.

"We need to talk" She finally said when they were passing by Ward's bunk. The door was half open and they both could see the mess inside. Coulson sighed.

"He blames me"

"That's his problem. It's not that what I want to talk about" She said, and Phil turned to face her.

"Then what?"

"You know what" She said severely.

* * *

**10:47 pm.**

Ward sat in the stool that Coulson was using before. His hand over the glass that was covering the pale, bloody figure of the girl that had stunned him with her beauty the first time he ever saw her. Then it was her energy, her way to see through people, through him, her witty remarks, her contagious smile. He couldn't loose her now.

The Agent checked the time, they were still far from The Hub, which was the closest Shield facility, and her time was running out. Grant closed his eyes, trying to remember the last time he saw her, in the train, and the last time they talked…. Really talked, before the mission, before she started searching for Quinn. The night he told her everything about his past, the night he kissed her.

Skye promised to tell him what Coulson had said to her, but she never did. And now she could die. He felt his heart hurting; her image was just…sad, wrong. He pictured Quinn shooting at her in cold blood, twice, and then leaving her to bleed, alone, like she was her whole life. He could just imagine her pain, crawling in her own blood, in the dark, with no one to save her, without him to save her. He punched the glass, hard.

He didn't notice that his heart was beating fast again, filled with rage and sadness. He thought about Quinn, that bastard, he deserved to suffer as much as she did, even more. He stood up, just to find May standing between him and the door.

"Whatever you're thinking, it can't be good" She said with an imposing tone.

"Get out of my way" He muttered.

"No. Sit… down" May took a step forward and replied slowly.

"Maybe I can't save her, but I can punish the bastard who did this"

"If you don't do it, I'll do it myself, believe me. But this is not the time" The senior agent tried to calm him down.

"Sure, you care more about protocol than you care for her" His voice sounded full of anger

"That is not true. And I couldn't care less about protocol right now. That's why I need to talk to you about something. We need to know if we can count on you"

"We?" Ward frowned.

* * *

**11:16 pm**

"Jemma"

She heard the soft voice and looked up to see Fitz standing in her door.

"I'm sorry, Fitz, I just can't sleep. I want to see her" She tried no to cry, but a few tears managed to escape.

"We should be in The Hub in an hour or so" The engineer entered to the little room and sat next to his partner. "Skye's going to make it, she too stubborn to stop fighting" Simmons didn't say anything, so he continued in a lower voice "I never should have let her go alone. This is my fault"

"Oh, Fitz, don't say that. She went in because it was our mission. You had a plan; you both did what every agent would have done"

They heard the sound of footsteps.

"Something's happening" Jemma added "Coulson, and Ward, and May… Do you think that they need something? Do you think that Skye-" She asked with a concerned tone.

"It's May. She's been going to Agent Coulson's office, and then back to the lab… over and over again" Leo interrupted, finally looking at Simmons "I don't think that they need something now, but we need to be prepared"

"For what?"

"Simmons… you know that we have heard things, in the Academy, at sci-ops, rumors…"

"Fitz…"

"I think that some of them could be true. Coulson knows something"

"That's not any of our business. If there's… something, it's way above our level of clearance"

"Do you really think that they care about protocol right now? Do you?" Fitz tried to speak as low as possible. Jemma shook her head "Whatever they are planning, we need to be ready, Jemma"

She hugged him. If the rumors were true, they could be dealing with something she was not prepared for, including going against SHIELD itself. But if Skye needed it, she would be ready.

* * *

**12:01 am**

"We'll need some help" Said Grant who had calmed down by that moment. They were at Coulson's office; he wouldn't look at his superior.

"If it comes to that, we'll get help. First we need to see what happens with the doctors" May said, sounding calm and determined at the same time.

"I have to warn you. We're planning to go against protocol. If we get caught…" Coulson started to speak to the agents, but Ward interrupted him.

"I'm fine with that" His voice almost sounded threatening

"Let's hope it won't be necessary" May finished "We should be at the base in minutes. I'll prepare the bus for landing"

Grant nodded "I have to get back to Skye" He gave Coulson one last hostile look and then walked away. May stayed behind.

"I thought you didn't agree" Phil said in a low, sad voice.

"I don't. This is just in case she needs… a little extra help to recover" She made a pause, then continued "Phil, if she dies before that… you have to let her go" She said, echoing the words he had said to her years ago in a mission that she didn't want to remember.

"She won't die. We'll keep her alive. We'll find something" He avoided Melinda's eyes. He knew that she could read him like no one else. She also walked out of the office without saying anything else.

* * *

**12:20 am**

Grant went back to the lab and sat next to Skye again. She looked as cold and pale as before. Who knew he would want to hear her voice so desperately. Also, the image of her body all covered in blood broke his heart. None of them could clean hear, change her clothes or even hold her hand. Even is he was right next to her, it still felt like she was on her own. He had failed to protect her.

May's voice sounded loud on the speakers. They were descending and about to land in The Hub.

Fitz and Simmons appeared on the door.

"The doctors are waiting" Said Jemma, walking closer to check on Skye's vitals. "Oh God. We are running out of time"

"Her brain activity is dropping" Fitz added, checking something on a tablet.

Ward felt a knot in his stomach. What could he do? If FitzSimmons were not able to help Skye, WHAT could a man like him do? He didn't even believe in God, but he was praying to anyone that could hear him. Simmons tapped on the chamber's screen and changed the temperature again. Within minutes the plane was on the ground.

Then the doctors… They took the whole tube out. Coulson and May were present too. All the team followed while Simmons was giving an update on Skye's situation, how she got shot and what se had done to keep her alive. No one spoke a word until the doctors indicated that they had to wait outside the O.R.

"Simmons…" Coulson couldn't find the words to express that she wanted Jemma with Skye. In this moment of his life he trusted very few people, and none of them were SHIELD doctors.

"It's Ok, sir. She's going to be fine" The bio-scientist replied. "They can do a lot more than me"

"I know" Phil replied, knowing exactly what SHIELD was able to do.

* * *

**Reviews are free, you know that? hahah come on, let me know your thoughts.**


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